Blue and Yellow
by SaturnOolaa
Summary: Paine meets Rikku, and says nothing of her thoughts. Then she meets Yuna and can think of nothing to say. All shoujoai, all the time.


Disc: FFX-2 not mine.  
  
AN: This is my first FFX-2 fanfic. It... uh... sure won't be my last. Unfortunately for my sanity. This fic deals mainly with Paine, and how she met Rikku and eventually Yuna. It is filled with sweet sweet lovin' and descriptions of beauty that had me bleeding out my eyeballs. Damn you and your gothyc poetry, Paine! Yeah. Meri-chan gets six extra marriages for being my beta-reader and pointing out my dumb mistakes.  
  
BLUE AND YELLOW  
  
The first thing Paine wondered when she met Rikku was what her family thought of her running around Spira in just a bra and hotpants. The second thing was that she seemed to talk a lot. The third thing was whether she shouldn't have joined the LeBlanc Syndicate after all.  
  
And she had though *Brother* was bad.  
  
"...And this is the Deck, where you can get out and enjoy the brisk fresh air!" Rikku's tour of the Celsius concluded perkily. " Except when it's raining. It gets slippery then, and you... uh... fall off. I kind of found out about that the hard way... Um, so that's the whole ship! Isn't it cool? Any questions?"  
  
Paine raised her hand with a long-suffering sigh. "Just one. Where am I going to sleep?"  
  
Rikku took a brief two seconds, rocking back and forth on her heels. It was the longest she had shut up since they had met. "Well," she said sweetly, "I was thinking that you could share my room. You know! We're the only two girls on board, so we could have sleepovers and talk and stuff..." She giggled. "What do you think? Sound fun?"  
  
"Absolutely no way," Paine replied blankly. So the girl was crazy as well. She had hoped that her appearance might clue her into the fact that she wasn't one for girl talk. "I value my privacy. I don't care where I sleep, but I'd like to do so alone."  
  
The blonde girl's face fell. "Awww..." she whined. "But it would be so much *fun!* C'mon, Paine!"  
  
"Not on your life." Paine, getting slightly sick of the constant sea breeze, swiveled around on one spiked heel and walked back down the deck towards the hatchway.  
  
Rikku followed her, still pouting. "Oh, poopie. Fine. There are some spare rooms near the cabin. They're small, and they smell like disinfectant, but they're alone. Is that good enough for you, Miss Grouchy-Head?"  
  
Paine nodded. "Sounds fantastic. Take me there."  
  
By the time they exited the elevator again, Rikku had returned to her normal perky self. Paine was developing a headache. "So," the blonde girl started, skipping forward along the hall, "tell me a little bit about yourself! Where're you from? Why're you joining up? What did you do before the Calm started?"  
  
"Are you ever going to be quiet?" Paine asked back, a little more sharply than she meant to. Honestly, though, the situation was starting to get ridiculous. Maybe she should just leave the group now, before this girl and her brother managed to drive her completely insane.  
  
Rikku looked completely startled. A sheepish, rueful grin spread over her face. "Sorry," she replied quickly. "I'll shut up now, okay? I shouldn't be asking stuff like that when I've only just met you." She began skipping again.  
  
Silence fell over the corridor. It seemed alien. Paine, despite her efforts in tuning it out, had gotten used to the girl's relentless babbling during the past two hours. Now that she was quiet, it was almost hard to relax again.  
  
They continued forward until they reached the halfway point of the hall. Rikku turned around, smiled, and mimed zipping her lips. She pointed to the door on one side. It slid open to reveal a room exactly like what she had described- tiny and filled with an overpowering cleaner smell. It was also covered in dust.  
  
"This is the room?" asked Paine, finally deciding that the silence would only end if she chose to end it herself. "It's... very unique."  
  
Rikku shrugged. "You said you wanted to sleep alone," she said, pouting again. "This is the best we've got. There are better rooms, but they're in my hallway... and we'd have to share a bathroom." She grinned. "I'll help you clean up in here, though!"  
  
"I don't know," Paine responded, hand on her hip, staring around at the rather unpleasant room. "I don't suppose there's anywhere else, is there? Maybe I should just sleep out on deck."  
  
The blonde girl giggled. "You could use the cabin," she suggested, pointing upwards, "but Barkeep's in there all night. Or do Hypello still count as people?"  
  
It was such a stupid question, Paine couldn't help laughing a little. "Anything that makes noise is a person," she responded with mock gravity.   
  
Another silence fell over them. This time, though, it was slightly more comfortable. It reminded Paine of her days in the Crimson Squad... when all the work was done for the moment, the four of them just sitting around and waiting for sleep. She had almost forgotten the feeling of not being alone. It was good to have that feeling back again.  
  
"Um, Paine?" asked Rikku quietly, pulling a beaded braid down from her headband and gnawing on it. Her voice sounded unusually tentative. "Can I ask you something? It's not a dumb question, I promise."  
  
Paine thought for a moment. "Sure," she replied. "Shoot. But... I won't answer you if I don't want to."  
  
After another moment of silence, Rikku shook her head and flashed a tiny smile. "Sorry! I'm just wondering if... you, um, y'know, if you have a problem with Al Bhed or something... 'cause you look like you're from Bevelle, and... we didn't really specify who we were, so maybe you just assumed wrong, and you'd rather Sphere hunt with a different group?"  
  
Not having laughed for slightly more than a year, Paine chuckled for the second time in five minutes. "I'm from Bevelle," she replied, "but I was never devout." She thought about Gippal before continuing. "I had an Al Bhed friend a while back. He was a pretty nice guy."  
  
Rikku broke into a smile so wide it was like watching the sun come out from behind the clouds. The smile transformed her face- the cute teenage girl stepped aside for the moment. She suddenly seemed painfully lovely. "Oh, good," she exclaimed, "I was worried! I like you. I'm glad you're staying."  
  
"Yeah," Paine replied, temporarily struck dumb by her own thoughts, "I guess I am too. So, do you want to show me where I'll be staying?"  
  
The blonde girl gave her a confused look. "I thought you wanted to stay here."  
  
Paine shrugged. "You said the rooms in your hallway are bigger, didn't you? And hopefully they don't stink. Maybe I can sacrifice a bathroom to myself, for the moment."  
  
Although she hadn't thought it possible, Rikku's smile grew even wider. Paine felt like she could be blinded at any second. "Sure thing!"  
  
Maybe she could put up with this after all.  
  
***  
  
The first thing Paine wondered when she met Yuna was how it was possible for any one person to be so damn beautiful.  
  
She had seen her before, of course, at a glance- who hadn't? She was the High Summoner. She had succeeded where all others had failed. Paine had been there on that day two years ago when she spoke in Luca, and had seen the genuine love in her eyes for the people of Spira, and had been amazed that anyone's heart could be so big.  
  
But this was different. This was a new Yuna, one who wasn't just a summoner. Confidence seemed to roll out from her in waves. She had changed her clothes, and her hair, and twin guns were slung at her hips. For the first time, Paine noticed that the High Summoner had two eyes of different colours- one was green, and one was blue, and they both went on forever. Never had she seen anything like it. Yuna was so gorgeous that she was actually glowing.  
  
"Hi," she said quietly, with a smile lighting her face. "You're Paine, right? I'm Yuna. Nice to meet you."  
  
Paine, trying not to look as stupid as she felt, only nodded. "Yeah," she replied. Her voice sounded a little bit choked, even to her. "Nice to meet you, too."  
  
"Is there something wrong?" asked Yuna, staring at her face. "You look sick."  
  
Breaking into a fit of coughing, Paine thanked the world for making that at least a little bit true. "Mm," she answered briefly. "We went sphere hunting on Gagazet last week. I caught a cold. I thought it would be gone by now, but I guess not."  
  
Yuna lifted her hand as if to touch her face, then laughed and lowered it again. "Sorry, I was about to try and heal you. I keep forgetting what I can and can't do in this Dressphere... they're kind of weird, huh?"  
  
"Convenient, though," Paine responded. A neutral topic. Good. "You never know what they'll be good for next. Where'd you get yours?"  
  
"Oh! This?" asked Yuna, looking down at her clothes with a little bit of surprise. "I made it myself. I needed a change of style, but I felt like using someone else's memories would be cheating, right? So I got Rikku to help me out."  
  
Paine nodded and gestured to her own clothes. "This is mine, as well." She strode to the edge of the deck, admiring the clear blue Besaid water. It was the first time she had ever visited the island. "I was surprised when I heard that the High Summoner was joining us. I didn't think you would feel at home with a group of sphere hunters."  
  
"Really?" asked Yuna, now looking rather shocked. "There's nobody I'd rather travel with. Rikku was one of my guardians, and a good friend of mine." She smiled again. "Well, actually, she's also my cousin."  
  
Instead of pondering the incestuous implications of Brother's reaction to hearing that Yuna would be joining them (really, how creepy was that?), Paine simply crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. "Hm. Really. Is that why you joined the Gullwings? To be with your family?"  
  
Yuna shook her head. "That's part of it, but not all." She joined Paine at the edge of the Deck. "You know, I'm a little bit of a celebrity these days... I just wanted to get away from that for a while. I'd rather do something with my time than retire young." She gave a half-giggle and shook her head. "It's sounds stupid when I say it like that."  
  
"I don't think so," Paine responded gruffly. She tried to keep her eyes on the ocean, but ended up glancing aside to study the curve of Yuna's neck. This really was getting ridiculous. She would have thought she'd stop getting preteen crushes years ago.  
  
In return, she was flashed another smile. "Thanks," the High Summoner said briefly. "That, and..." Her eyes shone warmly, a little bit wet at the edges, her smile turning soft and nostalgic. "There's someone I'm trying to find."  
  
There was really no mistaking a look like that. Paine experienced a depressing sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, a tiny flicker of hope winking out of existence. She felt young and very stupid. "Good for you," she said darkly, pushing a strand of hair from out of her eyes, adopting her standard disaffected slouch.  
  
"Are you alright?" asked Yuna, turning to look at her, blinking the love out from underneath her eyes.   
  
Paine's eyes shifted to avoid her gaze. "I'm fine," she said blankly. "Just wondering when Rikku will get her act together. She said she'd be up here by now."  
  
The High Summoner laughed, accepting Paine's sudden change in mood with grace. "She's a little bit easy to distract sometimes. She probably got caught doing something else." She looked away to the door. "I hope she hasn't annoyed you too much."  
  
"Annoyed?" asked Paine, a sarcastic tone in her voice. "Oh, *annoyed* doesn't do it justice. She's slowly grating my eardrums into oblivion." She followed Yuna's glance. "Speak of the devil."  
  
"Hiya, Yunie!" exclaimed a perky voice from the doorway. Rikku waved her arms up and down like a clumsy cheerleader. "Sorry for keeping you! Are you and Paine getting along over there? She's not bullying you, is she?"  
  
Yuna grinned and waved back. "No way!" she yelled. "She's great! I think we're all going to do fine!"  
  
Paine just sighed and wondered if they actually would.  
  
***  
  
"So," asked Rikku with a giggle, a few weeks later, "that wasn't too bad of a mission, huh? Yuna sure is a good shot, don't you think? Isn't it nice to have another girl onboard? Hasn't she gotten so much better?"  
  
Paine sighed and sat down, letting her legs dangle off the hood of the Celsius. The ship's hull was cool at night pressed against her bare skin. "Stop asking me questions," she responded.  
  
She had to admit that missions were easier since Yuna joined them. Three could pull off a fight better than two, and Yuna *was* learning fast despite her former life as a meek and polite Summoner. It just hurt a little bit to be so close to someone like that. It felt like standing next to a bonfire, like holding out a hand and letting the flames lick at her skin.  
  
And then there was that sphere. Rikku had shown it to her- the one with the boy in the cage, screaming at the guards, who was supposed to look like Yuna's most beloved guardian. ~What would you do if she was your girl?~  
  
What *wouldn't* I do, Paine reflected bitterly.  
  
"...You really do like Yunie, don't you?" asked Rikku after a moment, sitting down beside her. She had a bizarre half-smile on her face.  
  
Paine turned to her with a frown. "I like her well enough," she responded, using her slightly annoyed and brooding voice. She didn't like not being able to place people's facial expressions. Especially not *Rikku's*, of all people. "Why?"  
  
"Oh." The blonde girl's smile disappeared into a rather childish pout. "Poopie." She shook her head vigorously, braids flying everywhere, and the pout became a smile once again. "Oh, well. I guess that just means I'll have to try harder!"  
  
The only reply Paine gave her was a raised eyebrow.  
  
In return, Rikku gave her a flirtatious look and licked her lips. "To steal your heart," she clarified, taking a playful swipe at the air in front of her.  
  
"You're *joking,*" Paine said blankly.  
  
With what was probably the most graceful gesture she had ever made in her life, Rikku leaned upward and forward and kissed Paine full on the mouth. Her ribbon-draped arms wrapped themselves around her. For such a chaste kiss it almost seared with heat. Although she tried, Paine couldn't seem to make herself break away.  
  
Finally, Rikku pulled back and flashed a triumphant grin. "Goodnight," she said, a little breathlessly, standing up and striding purposefully towards the door inside.  
  
Paine licked her lips and found they now tasted like watermelon lip gloss.  
  
She sat out on deck for a long time, gloved fingers pressed to her lips, watching the ocean waves rise and fall in the darkness.  
  
THE END 


End file.
